Ringing the changes of computer telephony integration

The 90s will long be remembered as the decade of the computer telephony revolution, when computers and telephone systems were brought together to deliver a wide range of applications.

'By combining the power of a PC with the availability of the telephone, companies are able to provide services that in the past were impossible to even consider,' says Erik Tarkiainen, director of product marketing for Lernout & Hauspie, a vendor of speech products.

Computer telephony integration (CTI) can benefit any person who works from a computer and phone, using information on the computer before, during or after phone calls.

The obvious role for CTI is in improving an organisation's customer service. Wherever possible, it should be designed so that it operates by answering queries immediately. And, if necessary, the system should automatically pass the process through to the appropriate person.

This is where workflow comes in. By reviewing and examining business processes, companies can reduce bottlenecks and provide management with better control over the flow of work. For example, Norwich Union Direct (NUD) is using Staffware's Workflow Automation System to support a claims handling procedure, initiated by NUD's call centres in Sheffield and Norwich. Currently used for household claims, the system is to be extended to include the motor claims procedure with over 100 users.

Nick Kingsbury, international marketing director of Staffware, says: 'Certain aspects of CTI can reduce the level of cover needed in the customer service centre, as some one-to-one transactions can be replaced by providing customers with remote access to information.

'For example, at Federal Express, Web access is now available to customers, so they may track down their parcel themselves. However, ultimately you will always need to be able to provide some personal, one-to-one customer service.'

It is important not to become so fixated by telephony technology that you forget the process behind it. Enterprise-wide technologies should support and work alongside other applications.

'Everybody within an organisation should be working towards providing customer service, whether they are in the shipping, accounts or sales departments,' says Kingsbury.

Softbank Services' Richard Coppel, agrees: 'CTI needs to be recognised as an integral part of your overall systems, not just an extra bit that's bolted on.'

Currently the UK's tenth largest building society, Birmingham Midshires, hopes that its adoption of CTI will help streamline its operations and fit in with its overall plan to improve the way it handles its customers.

IT services group CMG is designing and implementing a #1m telecommunications system, which will help centralise 32 telephone teams, in five offices, into 14 teams, based at Birmingham Midshires' new Wolverhampton head office.

'Our customers want us to be friendly, well-informed, responsive to their needs, service oriented and trustworthy,' says John Suffolk, formerly Birmingham Midshires' IT director and now responsible for the company's new direct operation.

'When we analysed our existing processes and IT infrastructure, we felt we would not be able to fully meet these requirements without making fundamental changes.'

And change it did. After overhauling its corporate IT strategy, which included replacing all the company's core computer systems with best-of-breed packaged software, the first stage of the new infrastructure is already in place. A Windows-based customer relationship system now presents a comprehensive 'view' of the customers who dial in.

Birmingham Midshires' debt recovery department also uses the CTI system for out bound dialling. Operators dial customers from a list, connecting to the first one that answers. Now that they have access to the company's computer assisted collecting system, operators have an up-to-date profile of the customer on screen and are therefore able to hold a far more effective dialogue.

Birmingham Midshires claims that arrears levels are already 30% lower than the industry average, which compares favourably to 1990, where levels were two times above the industry average.

Overall, customer service is, therefore, the most important reason why companies should now be taking CTI seriously.

According to Ovum's senior consultant, and author of the company's latest CTI report, David Bradshaw, CTI systems can carry out many functions, and there are six 'value-adding' functions that are key to its profitable deployment.

Call-based data selection places information about the caller and the call itself on the recipient's screen as soon as the phone starts ringing. Intelligent routing then automatically routes calls to the most appropriate person or department.

Screen-based call management allows the user to control and re-route the call from the computer screen. If voice and data is synchronised, you can transfer the caller information and the call itself simultaneously to a new call recipient.

Automated dialling also initiates and dials outbound calls, while call monitoring automatically collects information about the call and its progress.

'CTI will soon be an option everywhere,' says Bradshaw, who maintains that call centre applications will span the enterprise, involving staff from all departments. Desktop CTI will add call control facilities to general business software and specialist personal productivity products, such as voice mail and personal information managers.

Increased competition between CTI suppliers is helping to drive implementation costs down, too.

'CTI can pay for itself within just a few months. But it is folly to focus on cost savings alone,' warns Bradshaw.

Questions for users
Do I need to replace my entire phone system to get started?
Occasionally, CTI brings to mind 'fork-lift' upgrades in which an organisation must replace its 'closed' phone system with one that is 'open' and can more easily be linked to computer applications. However, such an upgrade is not at all necessary to get started with CTI. Many high-value CTI applications, such as interactive voice response (IVR, which involves interaction by either voice or a touchtone phone pad) and fax-on-demand, can be easily integrated with your existing phone system.

How can I implement CTI systems that control my PBX and provide 'desktop call control'?
Such applications do require a software application to have control over an organisation's PBX. According to Artisoft's north European regional director, Rob Aherne, IT managers can use one of the following methods: a) buy a turnkey CTI solution from the PBX vendor. Most PBX vendors today offer some CTI solutions. However, these solutions are generally just as expensive and proprietary as the PBX itself. Or b) build or buy applications that are compliant with industry standards. This is actually the promise of CTI. Industry standards are evolving (such as TAPI) that will allow an organisation to buy off-the- shelf applications or development tools, which can be used with their PBX. The number of TAPI-compliant PBXs is continually increasing.

How do I cope when users start screaming for it?
When users get one facility, they will be asking the IT manager for more. If you don't provide solutions, users will look for their own - in the same way they circumvented the IT department and went out to get their own PCs when boxes became available.
'The bottom line is that the IT manager needs to get more familiar and involved with the telecoms side of the business now in order to deal with user demands when they come,' says Ian Kilpatrick, managing director of Wick Hill Group.
The technology itself will become increasingly complex, but users will want simple, reliable, integrated solutions. Therefore, IT managers and their companies will have to move towards partnerships with other organisations - such as telcos, service providers, or facilities management companies - to deliver what users want.
'This [partnerships with organisations] will lead to a more strategic role for the IT manager,' adds Kilpatrick. 'Cabling and connectivity will just be infrastructure, the way telecoms is today, and the IT manager won't have to worry about them.'

The cost of adding CTI
According to Ovum's report CTI and its future, the CTI market is on a major up. The report's author, Ovum's senior consultant David Bradshaw, reckons the worldwide market will be worth a healthy $14bn (#8.2m) by 2002 - a figure that includes the cost of adding CTI to existing or new computer and phone systems, but excludes the cost of the computer and phone systems themselves. Call centres dominate today's CTI market. If your switch can be upgraded, CTI can pay for itself in a few months, from cost savings alone. Building a new call centre is a much bigger decision than adding CTI to an existing one, because of cost and infrastructure considerations. According to Bradshaw, a 100-seat call centre in the US - which has a very large installed base - pays back in around two and a half months (worst case, 13 months). In Europe - where the number of call centres is steadily increasing - the payback period for a 40-seat system will be four months (worst case, 19 months). 'However, it's folly to focus on cost savings alone,' says Bradshaw. 'Unless you continually improve customer service, your customers will go elsewhere.'

Business applications enhancement
In a hotly competitive market, vendors are seizing any way they can to enhance their products. They are fighting a features war and CTI is part of it. Vendors are trying to emulate SAP, the German software company whose suite of general business applications has found remarkable success in both Europe and the US. SAP has CTI capabilities, thus raising the profile of CTI among vendors who don't yet offer it. 'CTI will become standard in the infrastructure of business applications,' adds Ovum's Bradshaw. 'In this market it is the vendors who are pushing CTI forward. However, as prices drop, CTI will become an appealing prospect for users, especially if the software they buy already has it built in.'